Saturday, August 19, 2017

A Late Summer Stroll


Late summer is a languid time of year,
here in the foothills of the Cascade mountains
of western Washington state.

It is so quiet that you can hear the dry leaves drop, 
the buzz of an insect as it flies by, 
and the fluffing of feathers in the underbrush. 


Something that the robins appreciate as they listen 
for grubs and worms. 

Can you see Mr. Robin on the fence rail?


Red Huckleberries brighten up the shadows.


They grow in the highly acidic soil
around rotting cedar stumps. 




A favorite of the birds - thimble-berries 
ripen above their large, maple-like leaves. 

These form large colonies in the shade of the 
forest floor. 


Whitey Bear hears a stick snap.......

We all go on high alert. 



It is just a small herd of deer across the way. 


We relax and move on, leaving them in peace. 

Can you see Charlie, the little black dachshund that
I am pet-sitting, down along the bend? 

He is always in motion and I am unable to get a clear 
photo of him! He is searching for critter burrows. 
He loves to dig :) 


He will be going home soon and we are going to miss him. 
He's been such a happy little presence. 


The blackberry blossoms are pink in the shade......


and white in the sunshine. 


The blackberries are sweet and delicious
this year, despite the drought. 


I am not the only one who thinks so! 



It's always nice to stop for a quick snack :)



Douglas spirea is a native shrub with delightful, 
fuzzy flowers that also dry well for arrangements. 


Ocean spray is a tall, arching shrub with white, frothy 
flowers resembling 'ocean spray'. 

The flowers also dry beautifully to a lovely 
parchment color. 

The slender branches are extremely strong 
and were used by native peoples to make arrow shafts. 


An interesting moth on a mossy rock. 

It was on the large size - about an inch and a half. 
Nature provides wonderful camouflage. 


Dried seed heads of the wildflower, avens,
back-lit by the late afternoon sun. 



Oregon grape ripens to a dusky blue, 
hence the name. These are edible and 
grow on a low, arching, evergreen plant
with toothed leaves. These form lovely 
colonies and are used in native landscaping. 

Here they grow alongside my driveway. 



Tiger swallowtails enjoy the fragrant butterfly bush
growing along the edge of the clearing. 


As we get close to home, we see the apples 
are ripening. 

These are left to the wild things, as they 
are too wormy :(


The tansy is blooming, but has fallen here and there
from our recent rain. 

No matter........it is harvested for its pungent leaves
to use for moth sachets. 


The button-like blossoms dry nicely, too. 


A cute grasshopper keeps its eye on me
as I take his cameo. 


I enjoy sitting here under the shade of the cedar tree
on a hot afternoon. 
You can see how brown the grass is from our recent drought. 
We went 55 days without rain, breaking the record. 


Our walk is over - we arrive at the gate. 

The lower area around the house is completely
fenced to keep the dogs corralled. 


The house sits behind a cedar grove. 
You can see dry needles are already falling
around the base of this beauty. 


A ground-beetle along the walkway. 
This one is not alive. 
I suspect a dog stepped on it. 
Poor thing. 

These beetles eat grubs. 


My side window with pots of red impatiens,
blue lobelia and creeping Jenny. 


Ramblin' Man took a hanging basket off the deck
that had seen better days and plopped it
into my little red wheelbarrow to move it
elsewhere. It looked so pretty, I told him to 
leave it there. 


I found the bench arbor last year at the end of the
season deeply discounted, and we put it together 
this spring. I am coaxing a honeysuckle vine to grow
up the side. 


It matches my rose arbor. 
The roses are tired and have stopped blooming
for now. 


Mt. Rainier's snows have been melting, 
exposing its rock face. 


Did you notice the crow at the top of the tree?


He is waiting for his friends.......


And off they go as the setting sun 
reflects on mountain snows. 


The end of another lovely day. 



Time to go inside as the moths begin to play. 

xoxo

Thank-you for coming along on my Late Summer Stroll, 
dear friends. 

And thank-you for your always kind comments. 

xoxo

Today I am linking with:


Won't you join the fun?

xoxo








25 comments:

  1. ooh, I'm in love with Your nature <3 Thank you taking me along to the stroll...
    Lovely photos, again!
    Love Satu xx

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  2. Hello, I enjoyed your stroll. So many beautiful nature scenes and critters. The dogs are sweet, your neighbors dog is a cutie too. Love the bunny and the deer. Your flowers are gorgeous. Lovely collection of photos. Enjoy your day and the weekend!

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  3. You have the nicest little walks around your area Karen ;) You live in a certain kind of paradise. It's made even nicer when you tell us the names of the wild plants gracing the forest floor. Did you know that lack of water makes berries much sweeter? I think all the rain you missed this summer has stayed in the clouds and travelled west to my area. I think we all broke the record for the huge rainfalls we've had this spring and summer. It's still ongoing with rain almost every day. Moss is growing on the patio and I think between my toes!! (not really haha!). Give those cute pups a little scratch behind the ears for me. We had a daschund when I was young and he LOVED to dig. If he found a hole, he would dig until he had disappeared into it himself!
    Wendy

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  4. How nice to have a woods around your house to explore! I love learning about all of your native plants. Hope you are having a great weekend!

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  5. Dearest Karen,
    How lovely that walk along with you was! So happy for having seen Tansies again and I will forever remember their smell... MISS them since we moved from The Netherlands to Georgia, on August 29 that will be 34 years ago.
    Those deer are a wonderful sight. Noticed that they had bare spots on their hide, wonder if they lack anything for good health and condition of their hide?
    We have had such a wet summer. Whenever we wanted to go out for our one hour bike ride, the clouds came in. Near the river, I don't trust it too much as it suddenly can rain. Friday we were out in the car when it started raining and we turned home bound again. There is nothing more soothing than the smell of the fields with fresh hay or other vegetables and the song of birds when biking along. Love the quiet nature. Not as quiet as in your part though.
    Thank you for always sharing and telling your lovely story about your immediate surrounding with which you have become one over the years.
    Hugs,
    Mariette

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  6. Wonderful sights on your summer stroll, Karen. Oh I juts love the rabbit eating the berries!

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  7. Thanks for such a lovely stroll, I really enjoyed all the differences and similarities to my walks at home. Have a great week. x

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  8. I've had to take a break from walking here in Florida...just way too hot and humid. So it's nice to walk with you this morning. Love the critters you've seen....the robin is a wonderful capture. Of course we all love the views of the mts that you have there! Enjoy your day! Hugs, Diane

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  9. Dear Karen, I thoroughly enjoyed joining you on your peaceful Summer stroll. It is indeed a beautiful part of the World you live in and I would never tire of those spectacular views. Loved seeing the beautiful plants and the wildlife. That bunny was certainly having a good feast on the sweet berries!!
    Have a wonderful new week :)

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  10. So beautiful. I enjoy my walk with you and I did not even get tired!! HAHA. So many beautiful sites. Our grass in TN has stayed green all summer. We have gone days with without rain to the point that the grass is about to turn and then comes the rain. We have been lucky this yr. Thank you again for the lovely walk...enjoyed it so much.

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  11. Thank you for the stroll. I enjoyed it. I not only love to see the photos, but I love to hear your descriptions and your knowledge in general about what we are passing. Hopefully, I'll be able to have the kind of yard I want. We have plenty of land, and we need help in cultivating it.

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  12. You certainly too us on a wonderful stroll, It was a delight to join you and see your amazing photos. A joy to visit and see your part of the world.

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  13. Hello Karen, oh what a nice summer stroll you must of had with the dogs. Thanks for taking us along and sharing your beautiful photos. I love the deer and the bunny.
    Wishing you a wonderful week.
    Julie

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  14. This is a beautiful place. Thanks for the stroll!

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  15. As you know I always enjoy going along on your virtual drives or strolls as you always find lovely things to show us! Today was no exception. Hope that you are now getting your quota of rain and things are greening up!

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  16. What a lovely walk in the Washington woods. Thanks for taking us along.

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  17. I truly enjoy taking your walks with you and your sweet dogs. I appreciate your knowledge of the many plants, flowers and shrubs along the way. You live in a paradise of nature and your love of it all shines through.

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  18. Wonderful photos indeed and looks like a great walk. Warm greetings!

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  19. Awesome, every bit of the walk. I'm sure glad I went along to see all the beauty that surrounds you.

    And, PS...Charlie is a sweet lookin' Doxie!!!!

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  20. Beauty surrounds you. You must love living there.
    xx Beca

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  21. That was just the stroll I needed (although I sit here finishing breakfast before dashing to get ready for work!). I've never seen huckleberries before and of course you have lots of things we don't have here that I've seen - but we do have the butterfly bush - in fact I just took several cuttings on the weekend to put in pots (gold, lilac, deep purple- my white one died). Have a wonderful week, I must fly and get ready for work - fire to be stoked and qchooks to be fed before my 45 min drive to the hospital! Hugs sharm

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  22. The photos of the bunny snacking in the woods are adorable. What great shots. Like you, I go on high alert when I hear a crack in the forest, too. I enjoyed accompanying you on your late summer walk.

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  23. I loved your summer stroll, Karen, especially those blackberries. I just bought some at the store today, and they're so expensive.

    I also loved your solar eclipse post. It was so strange to see it getting darker during the morning hours. This was a part of our history today and something I could tell the grandkids, so I made sure I went outside and observed. I wish I had the solar eclipse sunglasses that everyone had, and a lot of people were camped out watching this amazing event. That is so cool to see the crescents on your deck and through the light in the window, so unusual. And it's even more special that you take time to appreciate all the beauty and interesting things that surrounds you each day.

    ~Sheri

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  24. I'm sure glad I went along to see all the beauty that surrounds you.

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Thank you for stopping by! Your comments are important to me and are very much appreciated. xx Karen

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